Hay-rack.



G. M. EDVENSON.

HAY RACK. APPLICATION FILED JUNE I. IBIS.

1,209,690. Patented Dec. 26,1916.

: FErERs m. Pnomurna. WAsNuvarvN. n. c.

GALY 1V1. EDVELNSON', OF WILLIAMS, IOWA.

HAY-RACK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 26, 1916.

Application filed June 1, 1916. Serial No. 101,078.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GALY M. EnvENsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Williams, in the county of Hamilton, State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Hay-Racks; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to the class of hay racks, and has particular reference to a bracket or fitting which greatly simplifies the construction of baskets for hay racks.

The invention has for its object to provide a constructional element for use in building hay racks, consisting, more particularly, in providing a bracket for mounting the superstructure or basket upon the body or floor frame. Owing to the lightness of the superstructure and the unevenness of the ground over which hay racks must usually be driven, it frequently becomes necessary to use braces across the sides of the superstructure, or between the superstructure and the body of the rack in order to prevent the superstructure or basket from becoming disorganized, or so loosened as to swing back and forth with the motion of the wagon. By means of the structure which is hereinafter described, I am enabled to build a rack body and the accompanying superstructure or basket without the use of braces which make the task of loading and unloading the rack very difficult. Furthermore by the use of my improved structural unit, I am enabled to remove the basket as a whole, in comparatively short time, the basket being at the same time capable of rigid and secure attachment to the rack body.

With the above and other objects in view, as will hereinafter appear, my invention will now be fully set forth and described, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

In said drawings, Figure 1 is a section transversely through a portion of a hay rack, constructed by the use of my invention, Fig. 2 is a section on line 22 of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a portion of a hay rack taken at one of the vertical posts, and Fig. 4 is a plan view of one of the elements of the bracket.

Referring more particularly to said drawings, 1 denotes a transverse stringer and 2 a longitudinal corner stringer of the body of a hay rack, said transverse stringers carrying the usual floor boards 3. Mounted upon the longitudinal stringers 2 are the vertical posts or standards 4 which are joined by the spaced side-boards 5. As usual, the longitudinal stringers rise above the top-surfaces of the floor boards 3, so that a shoulder 6 is formed longitudinally of the body at each side thereo Mounted upon the longitudinal stringers 2, and extending transversely thereacross are the base plates 7, said base plates 7 being provided upon their inner ends with the feet 8 which bear upon the floor boards 3. The outer ends of the base plates 7 extend beyond the outer edges of the stringers 2, and provide bearings 9 for the vertical standards 10. The base plates 7 are secured to the rack base or body preferably over the transverse stringers 1. A bolt hole through the foot 8 and another through the body of the plate provides means for holding each base plate 7 to the rack body, one of the bolts being passed through the stringer 2 and the stringer 1 and the other bolt being passed through the foot 8, the floor 3 and the stringer 1.

Each of the supports 10 above mentioned consists of a plate which extends vertically upward along the outer face of the post or standard 4, and usually underlies the first side-board 5, each support 10 being provided with a suitable number of bolt holes through which the bolts 11 are passed .to secure the support to the post 4. The lower ends of the supports 10 are provided with the threaded extensions 12, which pass through corresponding openings or bores in the bearings 9, and below the latter receive the nuts 18, which bearing against the lower face of the bearings 9 fix the standards 4 to the stringers 2, the feet of the posts or standards 4 resting upon the base plates 7.

The inner faces of the standards or posts 4 support the bracket plates 14, which are, or may be, of greater length than the supports 10, and terminate at their lower ends in out-turned feet 15 whose lower faces correspond in conformation to the shape of the feet 8. The bolt which secures the foot 8 to the stringer 1 also passes through the foot 15 and securely clamps the latter to the foot 8. Also, the same bolts which pass through the supports 10 and the posts 4 secure the plates 14 to the latter.

From the foregoingdescription it will be evident that I have provided a bracket by means of which the basket or superstructure of a hay rack may be readily attached to the body of the rack, and as readily removed. When the rack basket is removed, the only portion of the bracket which remains is the base plate 7, which serves as a strengthening member to the body of the rack, as well as a securing device for receiving the basket. WVhen the basket is attached, the base plate becomes a support for the members 10 and 14, which are directly bolted to the base plate, the member ll being bolted as well to the transverse stringers 1. The member or plate 14: being a right angled structure, provides a rigid brace andsupport for the superstructure, so that all chance of the posts becoming loosened and rocking with the swinging of the vehicle is practically eliminated. It may be, and probably Willbe desirable in the practical use of my improved device to use the plate 14 only uponsome of the brackets, two or three of the plates 14 on each side being su'flicient to rigidly brace the superstructure against lat eral movement, and the supports 10 upon each of the posts serve to securely fasten the superstructure to the body.

What I claim as my invention is 1. A structural element for hay racks comprising in combination with the body and the vertical posts of a hay rack, base plates secured to the body along its longitudinal edges and overhanging the latter,

supporting plates upon the outer faces of said posts and projectingthrough the overhanging ends of said base plates, and bracket formed upon the inner ends of said base plates, vertical posts resting upon said base plates, supporting plates upon the outer faces of said posts having their lower ends extending through said overhanging ends of the base plates, bracket plates upon the inner faces of said posts, and out-turned feet upon said bracket-plates overlying the feet upon said base plates, and means securing said bracket plates to said base plates and the rack body. 7

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

GALY M. EDVENSON.

, lVitnesses:

F. J. CoUNsnLL,

B. T. JOHNSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

